Names erased & changed, houses torched: In Manipur, divide runs deep on both sides
In the heart of Imphal city, the burnt down ‘Evangelical Baptist Convention Church’ has a board that mentions its address as ‘Paite Veng’. Just about 100 metres away, at the entrance of the residential colony, a new signboard put up about a week ago declares the name as ‘Kwakeithal Ningthemkol’. ‘Paite’ is a Kuki sub-tribe, and ‘Veng’ means a colony. ‘Kwakeithal Ningthemkol’ is a Meitei name that roughly translates to “abode of a Meitei prince”.
The colony, with a mixed population of Paite Kukis and Meiteis, saw largescale targeting of Kuki houses in the first round of violence in May.
About 70 km away, in Kuki-dominated Churachandpur, Meitei houses have been burned down and bulldozed. At many places, even the last brick has been cleared, leaving a flat patch of land. Signboards and milestones mentioning Churachandpur (a Meitei name) have been blackened, and stickers naming the town as ‘Lamka’, a Kuki term, have been pasted on them.
Similarly, at New Checkon in Imphal East, where Kuki properties were targeted over the past two days, the name of the colony has been blackened on signboards.
These instances capture the emotional and demographic separation of the two communities, following 45 days of ethnic violence in Manipur, with over 120 people killed and over 4,000 houses – belonging to both the communities – burned down. While Meiteis have left the Kuki-dominated hill districts, the Kukis have left the Meitei-dominated Valley.
At Paite Veng, the local residents’ club members say the name of the colony was always Kwakeithal Ningthemkol, and is even recorded as such in revenue records.
“It so happened that over the past three decades many influential Kuki politicians, IPS and IAS officers, and even a leader of an insurgent group in Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with the government started living here. Since they all belonged to the Paite community, this colony began to be known locally as Paite Veng… But this is not the historical name of the place. That is why the original name has now been restored,” said a member.
“Earlier, we could not raise our voice because influential people from the community lived here. Even our Aadhaar card has Kwakeithal Ningthemkol written on it,” said another member.
Asked if the Kuki residents could return to the colony, a member said, “It is up to them. But it won’t happen anytime soon.”
At Churachandpur, the key town of the Kukis, vacant patches of land can be seen between the line of Kuki homes. These plots of land once housed multi-storey Meitei homes.
“In Imphal, even today, Meiteis continue to target Kuki properties. Elsewhere, Meitei properties are being targeted. The message is clear from both sides: ‘You are not welcome here anymore’,” said an official.
Khuraijam Athouba, spokesperson for Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity, said there is no enmity between innocent civilian communities. “It is only between narco-terrorists and the Meitei people. If we wipe out all terrorist groups, peaceful coexistence can happen,” he told The Indian Express.
But in Churachandpur, Ginza Vualzong, spokesperson of the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), disagreed. “I don’t think it is possible. All the tribal houses in Imphal have been burned down. People have been killed. This is ethnic cleansing. There is a fear psychosis. So total separation is the only solution.”
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